Finnish Sign Language in Legislation

The rights of people using Sign Language and of people in need of interpretation
or translation aid owing to disability shall be guaranteed by an Act.

the second country in the world after Uganda.

Working group of the Ministry of Justice (1996)

to assess what measures the section 14:3 requires and by what means those
who use Sign language can be guaranteed treatment equal to other linguistic
and cultural minorities

Section 14:3 obliges public authorities to take active steps to guarantee
those who use Sign Language the possibility of use their own language and
develop their own culture
o enactment of legislation
o economic or other regulative measures

Safeguarding legal position (the most important areas according to the Working
Group)

early upbringing

access to schooling

research and education in the area of Sign Language

access to interpretation service

access to information

better possibilities for efficient sign language training to the families
of the deaf children

school legislation should guarantee a child a right o training the Sign
language on the bases of a language right and not only on the basis of the
degree of his/her hearing impairment

vocational education in Sign Language > competence of a SL instructor

establishing research and education unit in Sign language at university
level

adequacy and efficiency of the interpretation survey should be examined
and information and guidance to the municipalities and service users

access to information in SL, municipalities should be responsible for
arranging services in SL, Ministries and County Administrative Boards should
arrange sufficient monitoring, reporting and guidance

possibility of providing legal right for those who use SL to institute
proceedings and to receive documents in SL should be investigated

consultative committee/follow-up procedure be established> observing
and advancing the position of those who use SL.

7 years have passed after publishing the report of the Working Group. Many
measures suggested by the Working Group have been realised, some still not.
In this presentation you will see what the situation looks like today in Finland.

School legislation

Law on basic education (628/98)

"10, sect. 1
The language of instruction of the school is either Finnish or Swedish. The
Sami, Romany or Sign Language can also be used as languages of instruction.

sect. 2
"Those with an impaired hearing must be taught also in SL, when necessary.

"12, sect. 2
On the basis of the guardian"s choice, also the Romany language, Sign Language
or other mother tongue of the pupil can be taught as a mother tongue.

Law on upper secondary school (629/98)

" 6, sect. 1
The language of instruction in the upper secondary school is either Finnish
or Swedish. The Sami, Romany or SL can also be used as a language of instruction
"

"8, sect. 2
On the basis of the student"s choice, also the Romany language, SL or other
mother tongue or the student can be taught as a mother tongue.

Law on vocational education (630/98)

"11, sect. 1
In vocational education, the language of instruction is either Finnish or
Swedish. The Sami, Romany or SL can also be used as languages of instruction"

" 12, sect. 3
On the basis of the student"s choice, also the Romany language, SL or other
mother tongue or the student can be taught as a mother tongue.

School situation

13 municipal schools (day schools), 3 state schools (dorm schools)

About 350 FinSL using students, over 900 other students (hard of hearing,
students with dysphasia, language problems or multiple disabilities) in
the schools.

In practice only few of the SL using children actually have the opportunity
to receive instruction in their mother tongue
o heterogenic groups, too many schools
o shortage of teachers who know FinSL well enough
o didactic material available in FinSL is scarce.

The core curriculum for basic education at different school levels is
now being reformed: SL taught as the mother tongue to both deaf and hearing
pupils who use SL.

All municipalities must follow the core curriculum.

Most of the deaf students study with hearing students at post-comprehensive
school education (general upper secondary, vocational) and higher education
(universities and polytechnics).

Financed by the state since 1979. Services and Assistance for the Disabled
Act (380/87) states the municipality shall provide interpreting services in order
to manage everyday affairs, free of charge. Support and assistance for the
Disabled Decree (759/87) including interpreting services comprising interpreting needed
for work, studies, social participation, recreation or an other corresponding
purposes for a minimum 120 (deafblind 240) hours during a calendar year; more hours
can be applied to individual needs o interpreting services related to studies
shall be arranged to the extent needed by the person concerned for coping with
his or her studies.

How interpreting services are organised

local authorities
decide who can use the service and defrays the expenses

23 interpreting agencies;
about 40 full-time interpreters in position

cooperative Via established by
interpreters; 45 members

about 100 full-time freelancers and 100 educational
interpreters

lack of interpreters is still a problem all over Finland.

History of Interpreter
training

Short training courses organised by the Finnish Association for the
Deaf in 1978 " 1985.

instruction and assistance in day care centres and with children, in
free time activities as well as in studies, in institutions, and among the
elderly

personal instructors and assistants to deafblind and in various tasks
as a backup person

scope of the degree is 120 credits (three years)

in Turku and Rovaniemi (2003)

Finnish Sign Language studies at two
universities.

University of Jyväskylä: Basic and subject specific levels (70
ECTS credits). Sign Language as a first language and SL as a foreign language.
The courses include SL skills and courses on general linguistics and communication
studies; the culture and history of the deaf population; the structure and research
of SL, and the acquisition of SL and bilingualism. Sign language at the basic
level can also be studies at the Open University (see www.jyu.fi/fennicum).

University of Turku Basic level, 40 ECTS credits. See www.utu.fi/hum/ylkielitiede/e-ylkie.htm#sign

Other laws

Law on Administrative Procedure (598/82, " 22, sect. 1) "The authorities
must take care of interpretation in a case that can be instituted by initiative
of the authorities, if the party involved does not speak the language used by
the authority, as defined in the Language Act (148/22) or due to a deficiency
in the person"s senses or speech, the person cannot be understood."

Law on Criminal
Investigation (449/1987, "37 "The criminal investigation authority shall make
the arrangements for interpretation if the person being questioned cannot speak
the language used before the authority under the Language Act (148/1922) or,
owing to a sensory handicap or a speech defect, cannot make himself understood."

Law on the position and rights of the social welfare client (812/00, " 4) "When
executing social welfare, the wishes, opinions, interests and individual needs
as well as the mother tongue and cultural background of the client must be taken
into account."

The Research Institute for the Languages of Finland is a linguistic
research institute of the Finnish State. We study Finnish, Swedish, the Saami
languages, Romany and Finnish Sign Language. Our operations include language
planning, dictionary compilation and various research projects. We also have
an extensive library and comprehensive linguistic archives. See www.kotus.fi/inenglish

Law on the Research Institute for the Languages of Finland (591/96) " 1, sect.
2 Among the duties of the Research Institute is to take care of research and
the preservation of the purity of Sign Language and the Romany language.

Decree
on the Research Institute for the Languages of Finland (758/96) " 1
The duties
of the Institute include: Studying Finnish and Swedish, Sami (Lappish) and
other related languages as well as the Finnish Sign Language and the Romany
language.

9
The expertise organs for the Research Institute are the Boards for the Finnish,
Swedish and Sami languages and the Boards for the Sign Language and the Romany
language.

The task of the Board is to decide upon recommendations of principal
or general nature in this field.

Act on Yleisradio Oy (746/98) Section 7

"4)
to treat in its broadcasting Finnish and Swedish speaking citizens on equal
grounds and to produce services in the same and Romany languages and in Sign
Language as well as, where applicable, also for other language groups in the
country;"

monthly
video programmes in Sign Language by FAD to over 2,000 homes, funded by municipalities
(see for more information about other services in FinSL www.kl-deaf.fi/portaali/international/index.html

several SL internet pages (for example: 2001 Introduction to the
Parliament of Finland see www.prosign.fi/in_english.html

Other services in FinSL by FAD

15 social workers whose second language is FinSL throughout the country

Family courses and children's camps

Virtual Study and Career Counselling Centre
in Sign Language (ww.virtuopo.net/english.htm)

Labour market consult network
(deaf specialists)

Mental health therapy services in FinSL

Virtual School
in SL (www.kl-deaf.fi/virtuaali/virtualschool.htm)

Sign Language teaching
project

Distance interpreting service project

Note also services of Service
Foundation of the Deaf www.deaf-serv.fi

Some comments on "A strategy for Scotland"

The document is well done (clear structure) and it covers the most important
areas of Scottish deaf and deafblind people's lives. The linguistic human rights
approach is a solution to many problems.

Chief barriers to inclusion (lack of
personnel, resources and materials, research information, public awareness and
understanding of the relevant linguistic issues) are/were the same as in Finland.

If Scotland adopts this long-term and well-defined strategy, it could reach
Nordic countries or even take a lead within EU member states!

The Scottish Centre
for Deaf Studies' consortium idea is a must in today's world; makes use of
virtual networks and international partners (strong international deaf community);
Deaf representatives and well-trained deaf and hearing native signer personnel;
government funding plus other long lasting project funding (EU).

BSL as a subject not only
for deaf students but hearing children of BSL users (their mother tongue, will
grow up bilingual at least) too! Native signers of all ages have a right to
study their first language as a mother tongue (many hearing people know much
more about SL than native signers) life learning principle.

Use of digital
multimedia multilingual material in the internet and mobile communication systems
grows rapidly.

Campaigns and work for sound political networks; leadership training
for deaf people; UN Standard Rules.

Cooperation with other European Centres
of SL, European Union of the Deaf, NADs needed SL status work in Europe.

Strategy
with suggestions for practical measures and recognition in legislation is a
powerful combination for ensuring linguistic human rights to Scottish native
signers.